From the editor: Real-world rail stories at Railroad Day on Capitol Hill

On March 2, railroaders, suppliers and rail shippers met with congressional leaders for the annual Railroad Day on Capitol Hill. Congressional offices hosted meetings for 456 visitors — a Railroad Day record, according to the American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association.

As they have in previous years, the rail lobbyists for the day asked their elected representatives to oppose bigger and heavier trucks, and preserve “balanced regulation” and the short-line tax credit. Regarding the latter: They requested that their respective congressional reps cosponsor the Building Rail Access for Customers and the Economy Act, or BRACE Act. The legislation calls for making permanent the 45G tax credit, which expired Dec. 31, 2016. With all the tax reform talk, 45G has a real shot at becoming permanent this year, some believe.

From the meetings I sat in on, and from the conversations I had throughout the long day in D.C., it once again was clear that rail citizen advocates continue to get better at making their voices heard on Capitol Hill. Some of the more effective connections I witnessed involved railroaders and customers tag-teaming lawmakers or aides on the merits, say, of 45G. They connected it to jobs, to the efficient movement of goods, to the dot-connecting that is rail when it works.

Meanwhile, rumblings about the infrastructure bill persisted as this issue went to press. Some congressional leaders maintain it’ll pass this year; others say they hope to pass something in time for the 2018 election cycle. So, the legislative murkiness likely will linger awhile. Which is one reason Railroad Day participants were encouraged to tell their real-world rail stories on the Hill. From what I saw and heard, they did.